Type 2 diabetes experiences of a Canadian ethnic minority
Date
2009
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
The rapid growth of type 2 diabetes (T2D) in the past few decades has been described as a major worldwide health threat. This illness, fostered by its close twin, obesity, is indicative of the results of technological advances that reduce physical activities at work, leisure and food preparations, without concomitant advancements in people's knowledge of how to mitigate the potential consequences of the resultant lifestyles. Effective arrest of T2D needs both appropriate preventive information dissemination, as well as illness remediation strategies. However, to disseminate appropriate information, and design effective strategies, knowledge of how people experience T2D needs to be available. In this dissertation, I explored the T2D experiences of African Canadians in Calgary. I used a hermeneutic phenomenological approach in the explorations. The experiences reported in this dissertation, and the recommendations provided by participants on how to improve T2D management services to the African Canadian community in Calgary, were from African Canadians who actually live with the illness, and therefore, have personal knowledge of it and its management issues. Moreover, the use of a focus group enabled participation of the larger African Canadian community in the research. Through this study, I identified lack of knowledge of T2D as a major barrier in both the prevention and remediation of T2D, and emotionality at diagnosis as a major impediment to effective T2D management. Furthermore, many participants reported not benefiting from their diabetes education classes due to lack of cultural sensitivity in instructions and recommendations. Religious beliefs, people's perceptions of T2D, acceptance of the illness, culture, and social support were some of the other factors found to impact T2D management. Most of these findings are amenable to psychological interventions, and, therefore, indicate that psychologists could play a role in the enhancement of the effectiveness of T2D management.
Description
Bibliography: p. 205-266
Keywords
Citation
Ekong, J. I. (2009). Type 2 diabetes experiences of a Canadian ethnic minority (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/2807